tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81498272755358703702024-03-13T06:28:59.415-07:00Two Little LunchesThis is a site dedicated to all things lunches, mainly lunches for my two girls! I love creating these fun little meals for the girls to enjoy, and as a side benefit I love making sure they're getting all the good things their growing bodies need!The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.comBlogger120125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-67448858471051662602013-09-17T17:32:00.000-07:002013-09-17T17:33:09.411-07:00Lunch in Less Then Two MinutesOkay, I admit it I was running to pack this in under two minutes, but I did it! I had GiGi and LiLi cheering me on and counting down, the pressure was really on!<br />
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Lunch is basically the same for both girls with one exception, LiLi gets a School Day Granola Bar because of her peanut allergy and GiGi can have a traditional Granola Bar. (We don't often have these in the house, but LiLi is going through a treatment called OIT and we are cleared to have cross contaminated items in the house now!) </div>
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For lunch they have these little turkey pepperoni bites, crackers, Stretch Island fruit leather, Tillamook Cheese, snap peas, Oreos, granola bars and an apple. GiGi has organic apple juice, LiLi has organic chocolate milk.</div>
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I set a timer to keep me honest and I finished this with seconds to spare. It's possible to throw together lunch right before you walk out the door, or for the kiddos to put together a decent lunch pretty easily. </div>
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Stay tuned for a lunch in 5, 10 and 15 minutes and one packed from the pantry! We used our favorite Easylunchboxes and you can see they hold A LOT of food!</div>
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The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-81625965357298655952013-09-02T18:40:00.001-07:002013-09-03T11:05:01.040-07:00Back To School The Easy Way How is summer vacation done, Labor Day passed and lazy days lolling in the sun gone for another nine months?! Don't get me wrong, I love a schedule and a routine. But more than that I love being with my girls. Sending them back to school is always a little bittersweet. That being said, I'm a firm believer in being organized, not reinventing the wheel and doing every thing the easiest way possible; including packing lunches. <br />
I've been perusing all the other fabulous lunch blogs; darling, perfect, so stinkin' cute! My girls are getting bigger and I've been told not to make too many cute lunches because it's just not cool in the Jr. High set. It's a sad day at our house, at least for me! I'll still be making cute lunches, but mostly now they'll be practical, yummy and filled with healthy options.<br />
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I hope all of you Mama's are finding the start of this school year filled with new adventures, a break and hopefully lots of kiddos trying new and whole foods!<br />
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Lunch for the first day of school is full of fuel! Turkey roses (just roll up slices of organic turkey breast), green grapes, cheddar cheese, stretch island strawberry fruit leather, pretzel crisps, carrots, rainbow tomatoes, a plum and a couple of Oreo type cookies. They both also have an organic chocolate milk to add a little protein.</div>
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The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-18306822949644651082013-03-06T09:02:00.000-08:002013-03-06T09:02:03.268-08:00Mom, I Want To Be a VegetarianGiGi made this announcement last night, right after I had walked in the door from an especially sad funeral. (They all are, right? But this was for a 5 year old...just not okay. Hug your kids!) I was tired, I was done and I didn't want to think about any dietary restrictions. All I really wanted was to throw a cup of soup into a lunch bag with a banana and call it good. <br />
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Better yet, I put on pajamas at 5ish, and delegated dinner duties to my Hubby and lunch duties to G. His vegetarian dinner was mac-n-cheese and green beans. Not sure we met all the nutritional needs but whatever, I didn't have to cook. Oh and my ten year old, new vegetarian is a going to allow herself to eat; chicken, fish, steak and bacon; but other then that she's going to be a total vegetarian. ;)<br />
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Here's what she came up with....<br />
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They both have pepperoni bites (totally meat free! not!), whole wheat crackers, green grapes and cherry tomatoes, stretch island fruit leather and a granola bar. (Lili's is the "School Days" variety...made on dedicated peanut and nut free lines.) Those granola bars are not a normal thing in our pantry so the girls were super excited to have them. They also both have organic chocolate milk to bulk up the protein. (My add to this lunch...I would have liked to have seen some cheese too.)<br />
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For snack GiGi packed them pretzels and a plum.The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-60264186230287333372013-03-05T06:28:00.000-08:002013-03-05T06:28:04.009-08:00Leftover LunchI haven't posted my leftover lunches because I didn't really think you'd want to see what we had eaten for dinner the night before...but we gotta make our kitchens, fridges and pantries work for us! So I'm gonna post them, hopefully it'll give you some ideas on ways to make lunch prep easier for you. I do realize that not every school has microwaves available to your kiddos to use at lunch time, so you gotta invest in some good Thermos products. They're the best! But you have to "charge" them before you use them. For hot foods, pour boiling water into the thermos and let it sit for 5 minutes, at the same time heat the food your sending as hot as you can get it. I promise it'll still be warm at lunch time! (don't pack ice packs around your thermos) For cold foods, do the same with ice and those foods will stay chilled through lunch as well!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5i-DPTxoV79yiZEjib4wiilcqUs1HAPkoaTwE4IFUJnhbNCEj3QGg_jMLX_HAvjglOSmFHAxztsdVv7NG0K7otmS8fqzj12R1iCye-VvMKX0rRJ22EuH50BsL-8oxy3CRXaPCnGDpFw8e/s1600/lunchchik.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5i-DPTxoV79yiZEjib4wiilcqUs1HAPkoaTwE4IFUJnhbNCEj3QGg_jMLX_HAvjglOSmFHAxztsdVv7NG0K7otmS8fqzj12R1iCye-VvMKX0rRJ22EuH50BsL-8oxy3CRXaPCnGDpFw8e/s320/lunchchik.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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So the girls have left over baked chicken breasts, green beans, strawberries, pretzels, 2 Thin Mint cookies and a NutriGrain bar. (total cheat on the bar, but it's just an extra) We did have cornbread and salad with dinner too, but there wasn't any left! They also have organic chocolate milk to drink.</div>
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For snack they have a small plum and whole wheat crackers.</div>
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-67055183247106082322013-03-04T12:57:00.000-08:002013-03-04T12:57:29.223-08:00Elvis Is In The HouseCall me unAmerican but I don't like Elvis. His music. His movies. Him. Never have. Never will. But I gotta admit that he had some pretty good ideas about food. We're peanut free here, but we're totally WowButter, Nutella and Biscoff friendly so our sandwiches are made with those spreads, feel free to use what ever spread your family loves.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8YlGWRvK_ksoLQZCmHNUN3J4ncpIWGKrQFvjrzxiqiRC7eyevvH43LlxY83LfQ9jECr9rhzO1on3pZ1Q_sw87XlUwq6RyeA6W-by6FcAOgxiKvHMCx4OmwiF-S6j151iEMBTY3uC5OMhz/s1600/wowstrawberry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8YlGWRvK_ksoLQZCmHNUN3J4ncpIWGKrQFvjrzxiqiRC7eyevvH43LlxY83LfQ9jECr9rhzO1on3pZ1Q_sw87XlUwq6RyeA6W-by6FcAOgxiKvHMCx4OmwiF-S6j151iEMBTY3uC5OMhz/s320/wowstrawberry.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We call this our WowBerry Wrap and it's delish! I use a flour tortilla, filled with Wowbutter and thinly sliced strawberries....it's like dessert for lunch and an especially yummy treat! Both girls have some grape tomatoes, cucumber slices, pear wedges and brownie bites. I threw in 100% fruit juice and some whole wheat pretzels.</div>
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For snack they both have bags of popcorn and Stretch Island fruit leather.</div>
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This lunch is packed in our favorite easylunchbox containers!</div>
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-49753916277201936442013-02-25T11:01:00.001-08:002013-02-25T11:01:51.351-08:00Little ItalyMy girls love little bites, they would graze all day, snacking here and there...making messes and eating me out of house and home. So they love it when I pack a bunch of little bits, a collection of foods that they can sample and snack on throughout the day. It's not uncommon for one of them to open their lunch box on the way home for a little nosh.<br />
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Today's lunch is just kind of like a meal you might buy at an Italian Deli, fresh, yummy foods that you can just pick up with your fingers and enjoy.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCpeCeqoODOcQzaJEaIi5C1rX06b9UmPMzo_L2Op-tLo12evG2lK6hOgNmpk-8cX7ZiWs7LX5dJUXc_2et8RiN1NGLsF4Cr2F4aTTgIEfcs3KdUH3TnC_oP0uGOl3bgPqpnWZaA7kLQ_ME/s1600/lu224.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCpeCeqoODOcQzaJEaIi5C1rX06b9UmPMzo_L2Op-tLo12evG2lK6hOgNmpk-8cX7ZiWs7LX5dJUXc_2et8RiN1NGLsF4Cr2F4aTTgIEfcs3KdUH3TnC_oP0uGOl3bgPqpnWZaA7kLQ_ME/s320/lu224.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Both girls have the same lunch today (Win!), they have little hard salami bites, cheddar cheese squares, whole wheat crackers, some heirloom tomatoes, sliced orange bell pepper, a little apple (I've said it before, Trader Joe's has the best small fruit, EVER), 100% juice and a few oreos. <br />
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I bet this is one of those lunches that comes home empty!<br />
I've packed the lunches into our favorite easylunchbox containers!The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-3272869798160566582013-02-20T11:04:00.002-08:002013-02-20T11:04:26.891-08:00Comfort Food at it's FinestMy girls love comfort food; warm, cheesy, buttery goodness. Actually, so do I. Really, who doesn't?!<br />
When I got up this morning I had to pack lunches (mostly because I was a slacker last night and didn't plan very well), it was cold and the forecast called for rain; another big surprise for Oregon; and thought, "these girls need something that'll warm them from the inside out!". I had a big bag of potatoes, lots of cheese (a staple in our house) and butter...perfect! Baked potatoes, filled with butter, cheese and sour cream on the side. Throw in some fruit, a hard boiled egg for some extra protein and a granola bar for something extra, some organic apple juice...and viola lunch. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuxm0iSZBsq-irbj-JgOljVH5Dka4cYYqA4eZZ10hKEYQUImmN5pUXmNrfk_AxlIEGvP_rWBiLnUZekFA8VcjoKdY81XjwWK-tjSWjvDEx0BVlZrLXZiEqhZh_eVn44nf_aK9LX7L5lXA/s1600/l219.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUuxm0iSZBsq-irbj-JgOljVH5Dka4cYYqA4eZZ10hKEYQUImmN5pUXmNrfk_AxlIEGvP_rWBiLnUZekFA8VcjoKdY81XjwWK-tjSWjvDEx0BVlZrLXZiEqhZh_eVn44nf_aK9LX7L5lXA/s320/l219.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This was an easy lunch to pack, but it did take a little longer to prep then a normal lunch. I baked the potatoes in the microwave while I fed the girls breakfast, split them and topped them, the girls can heat them up at school for the perfect, filling meal.</div>
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For snack they both have an applesauce squeezer and a caramel rice cake.</div>
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-61798805381761828262013-02-14T11:33:00.000-08:002013-02-14T11:33:36.912-08:00Tell Me That You Love Me....It's here, that controversial day where those in luuuuuvvvvvvv are so excited for roses, dinner, romance and those not in love are ready to punch couples in the throat. I'm kind of indifferent. I'm totally in love with my Husband, but I'd rather he show me he loves me 365 days a year rather than just one.<br />
However, he is romantic and fun and our girls LOVE anything "romantic" so the three have been celebrating since the First of February. (I'm not even sort of joking about this.) They made Valentine's Envelopes (think 2nd Grade) and every day they have been giving one another little tokens of affection...I was included too, but truthfully I was sort of bah humbug about it. It's always been our tradition that "The Love Bugs" bring little treats on the 14th, and we have a big, fancy dinner at home, as a family. <br />
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Anyhow, you don't really care about my issues with Valentine's Day, right? So here are our festive lunches, sort of festive lunches, I worked yesterday then rushed to finish the Valentine's for school and all the family chore stuff. I had big plans. None of which worked out just as I'd planned.<br />
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Like weddings, the girls have no idea what ideas I was picking from, they are only seeing the final project and they will feel totally and completely LUUUUUUUVVVVVVVD ;)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3qXutHo4x22B7LoIGagBw9ieSzkDJe2mHz00nVVxXLUVVEv_m5HkdK9_k9vt7wNT1DZeUnE6IM-_Mu8XSuC1dwbTvcTwqGcVQ9QF3T4dLff8-NZ1JFFtqdRNljtFQNnPzkAuH2FGPJoZ5/s1600/lunch214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3qXutHo4x22B7LoIGagBw9ieSzkDJe2mHz00nVVxXLUVVEv_m5HkdK9_k9vt7wNT1DZeUnE6IM-_Mu8XSuC1dwbTvcTwqGcVQ9QF3T4dLff8-NZ1JFFtqdRNljtFQNnPzkAuH2FGPJoZ5/s320/lunch214.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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LiLi is suddenly becoming picky with fruits, she's decided she doesn't like any of them. Fabulous news. So she has two egg salad sandwiches, heart shaped carrots and cucumbers, a kiwi, a slice of cheese, chocolate covered heart shaped pretzels, and a chocolate treat. </div>
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GiGi has a heart shaped hard boiled egg, heart shaped cheese slices, crackers, strawberries, heart shaped carrots and cucumbers, plus the chocolate treats. They both have apple juice.</div>
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For snack they have a mix of dried fruits, a rice cake and they will be getting loads of treats at parties.</div>
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We used our fave easylunchboxes!</div>
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The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-18041098528509401822013-02-08T06:30:00.003-08:002013-02-08T06:30:42.130-08:00Dinner's On!Meal planning has saved me so much time and frustration, I won't say it's saved me a ton of money. Try as I might I'm not super good about couponing or only going to the store twice a month or planning meals based on what's on special. I am good at putting together a well balanced dinner that looks and taste good. <br />
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When I was 14 my job was to plan, shop for and prepare dinner on weeknights for my family.(Genius on my parents part, I learned about nutrition, budgeting, and timing a meal.) I had a few rules I had to follow. I couldn't just make chicken and everything on the plate had to be a different color. Not only does it look nicer, but your getting a whole lot of different vitamins and minerals that way!<br />
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My family has it's favorites, things that cycle through more often. They also have things they just don't like (or maybe that's me) and I either don't make them regularly or ever; it's not worth preparing food that people won't enjoy or eat. It's a waste of your time and money, not to mention it stinks to spend time on something only to have no one enjoy it.<br />
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Involving your family in meal planning is a great way to get your kiddos to try new things and just be more willing to eat what you've prepared. I give my girls each a day to pick dinner, they help cook that night too and in picking what we eat, they are learning skills in meal planning too!<br />
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A sample weekly menu for our family would look like this:<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Sunday; Late lunch out (after church), Steak salads with crusty bread<br />Monday; Salmon, brown rice, sauteed snap peas and pearl onions<br />Tuesday; Roasted chicken, sweet potato wedges, steamed green beans<br />Wednesday; Make your own Nacho bar, with all the fixings<br />Thursday; Soup and salad/sandwich (this is our really busy night, so it's got to be easy)<br />Friday; Pot roast with carrots, potatoes and onions, green salad<br />Saturday; Pizza with salad or fresh veggies</span><br />
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Having a plan helps me shop or know what to defrost, it also helps me to use what I have in the pantry and fridge. Some weeks I set a goal to use only what we have, I call it "Freezer Clean Out". It's a great way to literally help make space in your freezer, pantry and fridge. It also is a great way to stretch a budget or save a little money. <br />
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Almost all of my meals can be made in 30 minutes or less, and I try to use as few dishes/pans as possible...I'm all about the speedy clean up. Other challenges I throw in are; $5 dinners, a meal for 4 cannot cost more then 5 dollars, vegetarian (meat free meals), leftover round ups, your on your own (literally, every Man or Kid for themselves).<br />
I know some Moms who just use the same schedule every week. It works for their families and it simplifies their lives. Which is exactly what meal planning should do. (I'd get bored, I love food and trying new things.)<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Sunday; Roast of some sort<br />Monday; Meatless Meal<br />Tuesday; Taco Tuesday (something Mexican)<br />Wednesday; Left Overs<br />Thursday; Chicken</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Friday; Fish Friday<br />Saturday; Pizza/Delivery</span><br />
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I generally do my planning on Monday; the girls are at school, I can go through the ads (I try to be good about it) and I can go shopping without helpers. If you have all the ingredients on hand you can switch out days easily, just in case roast chicken sounds better then meatloaf one night. I literally write it out (I have those Post It's that are like a weekly to do list) and I post it on the fridge...it helps me commit to the plan. The whole point is to get it down, try to stick to it and see if it doesn't just take the hassle out of 6 o'clock every night! <br />
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<br />The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-64334520115978450282013-02-07T09:50:00.000-08:002013-02-07T09:50:20.209-08:00Something's FishyI've got a couple sushi lovers in this house. One would eat it every single day if I let her, and she likes the cheap sushi train sort of places, not the yummy high end restaurants. I'm not complaining, I love sushi too. Last nights dinner was a great combo of spaghetti and sushi (Daddy surprised us by bringing the sushi home), it was actually a really gross combination, I don't recommend it. Ever. Really. I just had a shiver thinking about it.<br />
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But it makes for a great lunch! This lunch has California Rolls, snap peas (we were out of edamame), a Little Cutie, and dessert sushi. This stuff is really fun to make and your kids will get a kick out of it! I was out of Swedish Fish, because those things are amazing and I eat them. All. Normally, I would stick a swedish fish in the center of a very flat slice of rice crispy treat, then I roll it up, sushi roll style and finally roll a layer of fruit leather on the outside of all that. These just have rice crispy treats and fruit leather, still a fun treat, minus the fish.<br />
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They both have lemonade to drink and a package of dried seaweed to round out the meal. <br />
For snack they have homemade granola bars and dried cherries.<br />
<br />The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-63183874070944851662013-02-06T06:16:00.000-08:002013-02-06T06:16:27.780-08:00Rainy Day PicnicLili requested pasta salad; something she never tires of; for lunch and dinner and breakfast. (I'm not even sort of kidding.) Which got me thinking about when I make pasta salads for other people; usually potlucks, picnics and family reunions. I load it up with veggies and feta and it's really yummy and filling.<br />
It didn't hurt that we had left over fried chicken, because what's a picnic without some cold, fried chicken?! The only thing really missing was a three layer chocolate cake and I wasn't about to whip one of those up;) And maybe deviled eggs. Oh Yum! Now I want some.<br />
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Both girls got a couple pieces of chicken (they can heat it up at school if they want or just eat it cold), pasta salad with tomatoes, carrots, bell pepper, cucumber and feta, orange slices, string cheese and some crackers. They both have lemonade to drink and some oatmeal cookies for dessert.<br />
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For snack they have dried mango and caramel rice cakes.The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-14394483541772189542013-02-05T10:30:00.000-08:002013-02-05T10:30:14.343-08:00Superbowl Left OversThere wasn't a lot left over because there wasn't a lot to start with. We skipped the parties this year in favor of a quiet day at home and ordered in pizza. It was sort of slim pickings, but it provided the makings for a really quick lunch that the girls adore!<br />
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Both of the girls have a slice of pizza and a bread stick, a clementine, baby carrots, a rice crispy treat, and a Stretch Island Fruit Leather, plus an organic milk box. It's not fancy, but it'll do the trick!<br />
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For snack they have dried seaweed and a bag of grapes.<br />
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-2742670395625874532013-01-31T09:11:00.000-08:002013-01-31T09:11:46.340-08:00Mom, Where's Lunch?Aghhhhhhh! I worked yesterday (hence the lack of pictures of yesterdays lunches) and totally spaced unpacking and repacking lunch for today. Until, that is, when we were walking out the door and GiGi said, "Why don't we have a new lunch?". I must have looked at her like she'd grown a second head because she gave a rather large sigh and showed me her half eaten lunch, that was in fact from yesterday. <br />
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Nothing motivates me to move fast then the fear of missing carpool. Also, nothing helps like having a well stocked fridge and pantry. (I'm working on making my lunch lists presentable) <br />
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Today's lunches were packed in about 2 minutes, no joke!<br />
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The girls have snap peas, blueberries/cherry tomatoes, string cheese, crackers, ham roll ups, mandarin oranges, organic juice and a prepackaged rice crispy treat. (Yes, store bought, totally processed, saved for moments just like this!) They both got a bag of cheese nips and apple slices for snack.<br />
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Lunch is packed in our easylunchbox containers.<br />
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-60274925132924294782013-01-29T08:09:00.000-08:002013-01-29T08:09:57.505-08:00It's A Wrap!Let's not get crazy here, only one of my kids will eat this wrap (LiLi), so GiGi got a deconstructed wrap, which didn't look nearly as yummy.<br />
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The girls both gave a lot of impute on this meal, we were stretching the boundaries of what they're used to. Because we're a peanut free home we don't eat a ton of sandwiches, but we gotta be real, sandwiches are totally packable! So this lunchlady is slowly and surely trying to introduce some sandwichy kinds of food into their diets.<br />
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This lunch has a wrap with ham, cheese, tomatoes, avocado, lettuce and onion. On the side they both got a handful of grape tomatoes, blueberries, cucumber slices and 2 heart shaped peppermint patties. I threw in an organic chocolate milk box and a banana and packed popcorn and carrot sticks for snack. </div>
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The true test of this wrap will be what's left when they get home. I'll keep you posted!</div>
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I packed these lunches in my favorite easylunchbox containers.</div>
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-70761925237624616072013-01-28T10:24:00.000-08:002013-01-28T10:24:54.952-08:00Finger Foods for LunchI know, I promised awesome lunches...they're coming, honestly. I gotta ease myself back into the swing of things. The girls were actually pretty excited about these lunches when they saw me packing them, they both said, "These look like normal kid lunches!" You'd think I was packing them carob and gorp for lunch.<br />
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Both girls have the same lunch today! Score one for Mom. They each have mini corndogs; with mustard to dip in; dried blueberries, carrot sticks, a mandarin orange and a little pack of redvines (I love getting peanut free treats when Halloween and Valentines Day roll around, they're just the right size for a lunch treat.) They also have organic milk, a homemade granola bar and some dried mango for snack. It's not my most exciting lunch, but it'll do the trick!<br />
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As always, this lunch is packed in our easylunchbox containers.The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-68545465565857672322012-11-27T05:50:00.000-08:002012-11-27T05:50:06.200-08:00Basic LunchesHoly Smokes, bring back Thanksgiving Break! I need a break from our week off...boy, did I let things slide. Including all planning, routine and practical stuff. I went to the grocery store this morning and I swear I walked around for an hour and left with 2 mangos, some berries, milk, a reading light, some flavored seltzer water and a pack of gum. It never even occurred to me that I should be thinking about dinner or getting some real food to feed the people that call me Mom.<br />
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So dinner was blah and lunches tomorrow will be a little bit too. But thank goodness I got those berries! ;)<br />
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Gigi has a mixture of fresh berries (I knew those would come in handy), baby carrots, a cup of cream cheese and a bagel (because she only likes it if she can spread the cream cheese herself) some yellow tomatoes, a nutrigrain bar and some Junior Mints (totally Peanut Free! They rock!)...Lili has an orange instead of berries because she'll only eat berries from our garden (I have no idea why, it's the strangest food rule ever!)<br />
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They both have organic apple juice too!<br />
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For snack they have a bag of popcorn and some Stretch Island fruit leather.<br />
<br />The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-4257221517783133142012-11-26T10:30:00.000-08:002012-11-26T10:30:51.857-08:00But I Don't Wanna Go To School...Anyone else have to pry kids out of bed and get them off to school this morning? Hope they weren't as full of "I don't wanna get up" and "I wish it was still break" and "why can't we just homeschool again?"....truth be told, it was hard for me to get going this morning too. <br />
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That included packing lunches. I'm sure your burned out with all the cooking and cleaning and shopping from this last week and the grocery store was the last place I wanted to go. Thank Heavens for leftover veggie trays and fruit trays or my kiddos would be living off of canned fruit and veg for the next day or two!<br />
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This lunch is a mix up of all the appetizers present at Thanksgiving dinner...I love a fridge full of appies. In fact, I could eat nothing but bite size snacks for the rest of my life and be totally content. Hmmm...this is giving me ideas for dinner tonight;)<br />
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This lunch has baby carrots, watermelon, slices of cheddar cheese and summer sausage, a selection of crackers and a couple gingerbread cookies. They both have organic chocolate milk to go with lunch.</div>
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For snack they have homemade blueberry muffins and string cheese.</div>
<br />The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-65659243232143995982012-11-15T08:39:00.000-08:002012-11-15T08:39:26.325-08:00Ladies Who LunchToday's lunches are not for my girls, they are for "my girls". A group of us Mom's are abandoning our motherly duties today in favor of watching 12 hours of vampires and wolves....that's right, our little town is showing all 5 Twilight movies today and we have tickets! <br />
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I can't even believe I have signed up to watch 5 movies, in a row, from noon to midnight (really 2ish), but I am totally excited. However, the cost of movie theatre food and the just plain grossness of it (who needs a nacho with neon orange cheese?!) make me a little queasy. What's a girl to do? <br />
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Well, we get breaks between the movies. And we get a lanyard (collectible I imagine), I'm hoping mine has the lovely Doctor on it or Edward. Being on Team Jacob would just be creepy, I could be his mother! We can also come and go as we please, so I have packed us lunch! At least one meal will be relatively good for us.<br />
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Secelia doesn't like veggies (it's hard to believe we're friends...just kidding) so she has dry Italian salami and homemade summer sausage, 3 kinds of cheeses, little pickles and whole wheat crackers, some strawberries and pineapple and a slice of Sugar Cookie Bar. (Y'all have no idea, NO IDEA, how hard it was for me not to just pack an entire lunch of sugar bookie bars!)<br />
Heather and I have loaded salads, strawberries and pineapples and SCB's...again, the fact that we just have a little bit is a testament to my commitment to healthyish eating!<br />
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Did you notice the little bat picks? ;)<br />
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I've got to run to the store to buy some fancy smanshy drinks for us and some cheap candy (who are we kidding, I'm totally sneaking it in!)The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-72115977446876817002012-11-08T13:50:00.000-08:002012-11-08T13:50:00.264-08:00Thankful For You GIVEAWAY!Sure there was a lunch today, and it was pretty darn cute...but I've got bigger things to talk to you about today. A giveaway just in time for the holidays! Reynold's Wrap was so kind to send me a darling Cook Book that is all things Cupcakes and a set of their amazing cupcake liners, I threw in a couple more sets of liners and a cake decorating kit so you can create to your hearts desires!<br />
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I love using these liners when I bake, but I also use them to dress up a lunch. The liners fit perfectly inside the silicon ones and just kick it up a notch...you can jazz up a holiday them, a birthday lunch, you name it! <br />
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/ReynoldsKitchens/app_462520750449559">https://www.facebook.com/ReynoldsKitchens/app_462520750449559</a><br />
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Promise after you've read the blog post and entered to win this fun give away that you'll head over and like their Facebook page.<br />
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I bet you want to know, how can you win?! Let's not get ahead of ourselves, let's see what might be coming home to you!<br />
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To win you just need to comment on your favorite things to bake either on the blog post or on Two Little Lunches FaceBook Page. Also, share this giveaway with your friends and family and leave that in the comments too! </div>
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Give away will be ending on November 13th at 9:30 a.m. PST. Open to residents of the US only. (I'm sorry my out of country friends, I wish I could mail these things to you, but the shipping costs are insane!)</div>
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The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-35588110309943693022012-11-07T06:28:00.000-08:002012-11-07T06:28:36.665-08:00Did You Vote?I'm a day late on this lunch, but all of America has the beautiful right to vote, so today we are celebrating Democracy and hoping it worked out the way you wanted it to. The girls' school voted and Romney won by a landslide (which is a surprise being we're in Oregon), but they've been learning all about the 6 main political parties so I'm pleased with their turnout;) Apparently there was a vote for Mommy, one for Daddy and one for Lauren? Guess those kindergartners didn't understand exactly what this voting was about, or they weren't happy with their two choices...who could blame them!<br />
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This lunch is red and blue, I wish I'd thought about it before tonight and found an elephant and donkey cutter...that would have put this lunch over the top! <br />
Both girls have white cheddar stars, salami stars, cucumber stars and carrot strips, cheese it like crackers, organic cut pear cups, and a couple of chocolate chip cookies. Both girls are taking an organic chocolate milk.<br />
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Snack is freeze dried pineapple (this stuff is amazing!) and a homemade granola bar.<br />
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<br />The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-65025486234858948692012-11-05T07:27:00.000-08:002012-11-05T07:27:46.681-08:00Blah! It's MondayThere are days when I would sell my soul to hand the girls 2 bucks to buy a hot lunch; regardless of how I feel about hot lunch; today was one of them. We got home from a wonderful weekend in Seattle and I was so tired from all the fun, I skipped going to the grocery store to make sure we had some fresh fruits and vegetables in the house. Probably a mistake. But it forced me to get creative in packing lunch.<br />
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I managed to find a carrot that wasn't too limp and a cucumber that only looked a little questionable. I always keep organic apple sauce on hand (I know, not quite a fresh fruit...but it'll do!) and we always have loads of cheese. Thank God!<br />
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Both girls got dry Italian salami (also always a staple), aged white cheddar cheese, cucumber and carrot sticks, goldfish crackers, apple sauce for Gigi dried apricots for Lili and leftover Halloween Marshmallows. GiGi loves to dip her goldfish crackers into the applesauce; sort of like apple pie with cheddar cheese;)</div>
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They both are getting an organic chocolate milk.</div>
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For snack they each have a Stretch Island Fruit Leather and a Caramel rice cake. Sort of boring, but it's what we had in the pantry!</div>
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-49043203579440906052012-10-30T07:20:00.001-07:002012-10-30T07:20:19.476-07:00A True BentoThis lunch looks a lot more like a traditional bento lunch would look, if GiGi and LiLi were little school girls in Japan;) They both love fish, so when I make it for dinner I always make extras...my girls can't get enough of this good for you, brain food!<br />
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Lunch today has some baked salmon, white rice with sesame seeds, dried seaweed sheets, cucumber slices (I wanted to make cucumber salad but ran out of time), sliced permission and juice. If you haven't tried dried seaweed you should check it out...it has a crunchy, salty taste and it's full of nutrients!The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-75882056270867157282012-10-29T07:17:00.000-07:002012-10-29T07:17:10.784-07:00Field Trip LunchesLiLi and I are headed to The Rice Rock Museum for a field trip and I was at a huge loss when it came time for packing a lunch I'd want to eat too! (I might be the pickiest eater in our house.) Lucky for me LiLi is game for just about anything, so I decided on a trio of salads.<br />
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1. A nice big green salad topped with turkey, swiss, tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, radishes, topped with a little green goddess dressing! Yum! <br />
2. Pasta salad filled with loads of veggies and topped with cheddar cheese and Italian dressing. Enjoy!<br />
2. Fruit salad; grapes, cantaloupe and strawberries....Delish! (I got the fruit salad, LiLi got plain grapes)<br />
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I've thrown in tons of extras too, because who knows what we'll feel like eating. We have fruit leather, granola bars, kettle corn, freeze dried strawberries, cheese crackers and some corn candy as a treat. We both get a bottle of water for the day.<br />
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Grace is taking a similar lunch, but she doesn't like pasta salad so she has some fresh mushrooms instead.The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-72177794197709212442012-10-25T09:57:00.001-07:002012-10-25T09:57:50.711-07:00When a Kid Packs LunchWhen a kid packs lunch it looks a lot like this....<br />
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In my head, this whole packing went something like those "If You Give A Mouse A Muffin" books. If you give a 10 and 8 year old free reign, they will start with candy. Always. Every time. Then hopefully they will decide that they should throw in some fruit and maybe a veg (mandarin orange and cucumbers). This might lead them to some sort of protein, or two. Because salami is never enough, you probably need a bagel and cream cheese. While a bagel may seem like enough fiber/carbs, your wrong. So throw in a granola bar and goldfish to round it out! When it's all done, there isn't really room for candy so you eat it right then, because who can let candy go to waste?!<br />
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That's how I imagined it went. Even if it went another way; which may have included some arguing, bossing and a little crying...plus a lot of mess...it's packed. I can live with it. I can get used to these kids of mine packing a sort of balanced lunch every now and again. It bought me a few minutes of time just hanging out on the couch, surfing Pinterest. <br />
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Oh, and in this spirit of letting go every now and again and letting the kiddos be in charge they got to pack their own snacks too. I'm a little freaked out about this part. I'm fairly certain that GiGi's teacher is going to call tomorrow to make sure I'm okay, that I haven't suffered a seizure or some other medical emergency. They have bags of sugar cereal. The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8149827275535870370.post-79395760224117434652012-10-24T09:22:00.000-07:002012-10-24T09:22:07.619-07:00Lunch for MomI'm going to be at school all day today and a Mom's got to eat too! It got me thinking about all of you who work outside the home too, what do you do every day for lunch? Every once in a while I'll be featuring some lunches for the older set.<br />
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Lunch for this Mom almost always includes a salad. I LOVE salads! It's a sickness, sort of, because it's sort of healthy. <br />
My salad today is piled high with all sorts of goodies. Swiss cheese, tomatoes, cucumber, turkey, orange bell pepper. I have a little container of vinigrette to top it with. I threw in a couple of whole wheat crackers, a few starburst (because I like a little sweet too) and some freeze dried strawberries. <br />
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I'm having a hard time waiting till lunch to eat this! Just knowing it's in the fridge waiting for me is making me a little bit crazy and hungry!<br />
The Lunch Ladyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00269348466309860899noreply@blogger.com0